Abstract

The story of Lucifer’s pride and fall fills an empty space within Satan’s “biography.” It originates in an angelological re-reading of Isa 14 and Ezek 28 which doesn’t stem from early Judaism but from the Christianity of the late 2nd century. Its background is the dispute about the virulent question regarding the origin of evil, stimulated by the Marcionite school. The myth of Lucifer offers a counter-tale to the myth of Christ, thus reflecting developing Christology and conceptions of the Antichrist as well. The pattern of the devil’s self-aggrandizement/pride and downfall in contrast to Christ’s self-abasement/humility and exaltation is also ethically relevant.